In November 2022, Nevada voters will decide on an amendment to increase the minimum wage for all employees to $12 by 2024. The state legislature voted on Friday to refer a constitutional amendment to the ballot that would change the current minimum wage, which is set at two different rates depending on whether the employee…
A special Democratic primary will be held on May 25 for District 78 in the Alabama House of Representatives. A Democratic primary runoff, if necessary, will take place on June 22. The winner of the Democratic primary will face Loretta Grant (R) in the special general election on September 7. Terance Dawson, Kenyatté Hassell, Roderick…
Tennessee state Representative Mike Carter (R) died from pancreatic cancer on May 15, 2021. Carter first won election to the 29th District on Nov. 6, 2012. He was subsequently re-elected four times, most recently in 2020. Governor Bill Lee (R) said in a post on Twitter, “I will miss Mike Carter who was a leader,…
Although the first case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was confirmed on Jan. 21, 2020, it wasn’t until March when the novel coronavirus upended life for most Americans. Throughout that spring, states issued stay-at-home orders, closed schools, restricted travel, issued mask mandates, and changed election dates. Many of those policies remain in place today. Here…
On May 14, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) signed House Bill 651 into law. Both chambers of the legislature passed the bill along party lines in the last week of April. All Republicans but one were in favor and all Democrats were opposed. House Bill 651 changes the laws governing the initiative process in Montana…
On May 14, 2021, the Mississippi Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to overturn Ballot Measure 1 (Initiative 65). The medical marijuana initiative was approved by 74% of voters at the 2020 general election. The court ruled that the initiative should not have been placed on the ballot because the initiative petition did not comply with the…
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) amended its mask guidance May 13. The new guidance says fully vaccinated people do not need to wear masks in most indoor and outdoor public settings, regardless of the number of people gathered. The guidance still recommends fully vaccinated people wear masks and social distance at doctor’s…
Clark Chapin (R) assumed office as an auditor of public accounts in Connecticut on May 6. The Office of the Auditors of Public Accounts is a legislative agency in the Connecticut state government responsible for the state’s financial and accounting functions. Unlike any other state, Connecticut’s auditing agency is led by two partisan auditors—one Democrat…
A joint session of the Alaska Legislature voted 35-24 to confirm Treg Taylor as the state’s attorney general on May 11. Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) appointed Taylor as acting attorney general on Jan. 29 after Ed Sniffen resigned following allegations of sexual misconduct. Before Dunleavy appointed Taylor attorney general, Taylor served as deputy attorney general…